French Alps shooting: Three victims in vehicle were shot in the head

Three victims of a gun attack in the village of Chevaline, near Lake Annecy in the French Alps, were shot in the head, a French prosecutor has confirmed, while a young girl was beaten and shot in the shoulder.

French police said father Saad al-Hilli, from Claygate, Surrey, was found dead alongside his wife and mother in a BMW in eastern France.

A girl was also found near the car and remains in critical condition in hospital following the attack having been shot three times and apparently beaten, while another girl, 4, was found unharmed in the car.

She had been hiding for more than eight hours under her mother’s legs during and after the murders but was not initially spotted by police.

Prosecutor Eric Maillaud, who is leading the investigation into the shooting in a idyllic spot in the Alps beside Lake Annecy at Chevaline, described the survivor as ‘miraculous’.

Mr Maillaud said: ‘She stayed beside her mother’s body, prostate for almost eight hours, and did not move during all this time.’

Mr Al-Hilli, his wife, his mother and the two children were travelling in a British-registered car at the time of the attack on Thursday.

A sixth victim, a cyclist, was found dead near the BMW car, which was parked in a forest lay-by.

The crime scene in Annecy was found littered with spent cartridges (Picture: AP)

It is believed he may have tried to intervene during an alleged robbery attempt on the family, whose bodies were found near the town of Chevaline.

Police said last night they had traced the car’s owner.

Dozens of spent cartridges were scattered around the scene of the killings, although no firearms have been recovered.

A police spokesman said: ‘The entire area has been sealed off while a full multiple murder investigation is under way.’

There are 60 police officers involved in the operation. The attack took place close to the resort town of Annecy, which is popular with British visitors.

Explaining how a four-year-old remained undiscovered at the scene of the shooting for more than eight hours, a source told the Evening Standard: ‘The crime scene was kept frozen until forensics experts arrived from Paris during the night.’This meant that the dead bodies had to remain in the place where they fell. The little girl was well hidden under her mother’s legs, and clearly was in a state of shock.’

Mr Maillaud said that the British cyclist who discovered the crime scene told them he came across the ‘powerful’ BMW with the engine still running.

‘He also saw coming towards the car a young girl who collapsed before him,’ he said.

‘He quickly came to her and put her in a side position and called the police and ambulance service and everyone came to the scene.’

The cyclist told police that the girl had been repeatedly hit ‘extremely violently’.

Prosecutor Eric Maillaud said he believed the shooter’s intent was always to kill (Picture: AP)

Police said that the three murdered in the car where all the shot in the middle of the head.